Victoria is Learning to Trust Siku for Sounds

Author and educator Stephen Covey is quoted as saying, “Trust is the glue of life. It's the most essential ingredient in effective communication. It's the foundational principle that holds all relationships.”

Victoria, who was born with a genetic disorder that has progressively affected her hearing, is being challenged to trust in a new way these days.

Victoria’s condition, known as primary ciliary dyskinesia, means that her cilia—the hairlike structures that line internal airways—are not flexible like they should be. So although Victoria began using hearing aids nearly 30 years ago, she has a hard time using them. Her defective cilia make the hearing aids uncomfortable and itchy. She says her ears burn, bleed, and drain fluids when she has the hearing aids in. “I just can’t wear them very often,” she reports. Not wearing them creates an obvious problem, though. “Without my hearing aids, I am pretty deaf. I can’t hear anything.”

So Victoria decided a couple of years ago to listen to her intuition and consider another option—an assistance dog. At the time, she was living in Maryland but wanted to move back to the Midwest, where her dad was still living. She chose the Twin Cities and says, “When I knew I was moving here, I looked up hearing dogs and there was one four miles away from where I planned to live.”

Settling close to Can Do Canines, Victoria wanted to make sure she was well situated before applying with the organization. However, a scary experience increased her urgency. She put something in the oven, needing to cook it for an hour. She shares that about nine hours later, “I smelled something. Is the neighbor trying to burn the place down? I went into the kitchen and saw the timer light. [The food] was burnt to a crisp.” She remembers thinking, “Man, I need that Hearing Assist Dog now!”

Soon, Siku, a stunning yellow Lab, would become Victoria’s alerting extraordinaire. Whether it’s the oven timer, the phone, a door knock, an alarm clock, or the fire alarm, Siku is on the job, getting Victoria’s attention. Even when Victoria drops her keys in public without realizing it, Siku will immediately stop. Victoria says, “She looks at the keys, looks at me, nudges me, and waits to pick them up when asked.”

When they are outside together, Siku’s actions indicate to Victoria that another person is approaching. “If she’s looking a certain way, then I look that way. I’m trusting her to show me that there’s somebody there.”

That trust isn’t always easy, though. Victoria explains that she’s tempted to use her hearing aids when practicing with Siku, so she can verify if Siku is performing her tasks correctly. Client Service Coordinator Jen encouraged Victoria to rely on Suki’s training. Victoria remarks, “I’m gradually learning to trust her.”

Siku is doing all she can to earn that trust, with Victoria verifying, “She’s helping me in a million ways.” Noting Siku’s desire to work, Victoria describes Siku’s excited attitude as “What’s next? What’s next? Okay, Mama, what’s next?”

Victoria also appreciates Siku’s faith in her, saying, “She will walk down the hall and she just looks up at me in the sweetest way. She’s looking at me and trusting me, and I just melt.” Their time snuggling on the couch together also helps to cement their bond.

It’s that unconditional love from Siku that is helping them to build crucial trust—the “glue of life.”

 

Thank you to all those who made this partnership possible:
Whelping Home — Sue McLinn
Raisers — The Barrera Family, The Elkins Family
Special Thanks — Stanley Correctional Institution, University of Minnesota FETCH Program (Taylor Dahlquist, Shannon Shea)
Name-A-Puppy Donor — Kim and Tom Medin